The invention relates an emergency transmitter buoy for use on marine vessels.
Emergency position indicating radio beacons ("EPIRBs") are intended for use by mariners in an emergency situation. According to international agreements, the EPIRB transmits a homing signal and beacon signal on one or more predetermined frequencies for reception by search and rescue satellite aided tracking ("SARSAT") satellites in orbit around the earth. The SARSAT uses the beacon signal to determine the position coordinates of the EPIRB and transmits the position to one of several international ground receiving stations. The ground receiving station relays the position coordinates of the EPIRB and a rescue coordination center deploys rescue craft to the EPIRB site in order to provide rescue operations. The homing signal is transmitted by the EPIRB to ground based and other rescue facilities enabling vehicles to home-in on the signals and thus locate the EPIRB and those in distress.
The EPIRB itself is housed in a container which is designed to float on the surface of the water. A lanyard is used to keep the EPIRB in proximity to personnel in a lifeboat or a life jacket; and for efficiency, a means for storage of the lanyard before the EPIRB is deployed is required. The EPIRB container must be water tight; and accordingly, any switches on the outside of the container must be designed to control the electronics within the container but not allow the leakage of water. The EPIRB electronics includes a microprocessor which controls the operation of the transmitter and the form of the signals which are sent. A transmitting antenna on the top of the buoy must be designed to efficiently transmit signals to remote receiving locations when the EPIRB is in or out of the water; however, care must be taken in order to shield the electronics from the signals which are transmitted by the antenna. It would, therefore, be desirable to provide an EPIRB which would satisfy the above operating requirements.